Modern day aircraft engines operate at extremely high temperatures, thus subjecting the aircraft's supporting propulsion hardware, such as pylons and nacelles, to these high temperatures. Furthermore, in some nacelle designs, adequate space is not available to effectively dissipate this heat or insulate the surrounding structure from the effects thereof.
Some nacelles use titanium thrust reverser inner walls to withstand these high engine temperatures and titanium alloys that are resistant to attack by exposure to hydraulic fluids at elevated temperatures. However, thrust reversers made predominantly from titanium and titanium alloys are expensive, heavy, and difficult to fabricate.
Other nacelles use inner walls made from composite materials such as carbon fiber-epoxy. However, these nacelles require external heat shielding to protect the composite materials from engine heat. Such heat shielding adds weight and consumes valuable space, while not contributing to the inner wall's structural performance. Furthermore, external heat shielding requires periodic inspection and maintenance.
Thus, there is a need for an aircraft nacelle that sufficiently withstands commercial aircraft engine temperatures, but is also economical to form and easier to maintain and manufacture than prior art thrust reversers.